2014 Orchestra Compensation Reports: Executives

Compensation Reports ExecutivesBy many measures, at least non-artistically speaking, the 2011/12 season was one many within the field were happy to put behind them. Labor disputes in Detroit, Philadelphia, and Louisville were beginning to settle down but in Minnesota, the mother of all disputes (so far) was just getting under way with additional nastiness in store at Atlanta, Indianapolis, and St. Paul. Nonetheless, it was a great year for overall executive compensation with the average orchestra executive enjoying a 5.81 percent increase in compensation, which was a smidge higher than the previous season.

The Data

In order to provide information that is as accurate as possible, data from the 2011/12 season is gathered from orchestra’s respective IRS Form 990 for the corresponding season.

Adaptistration makes no claim to the accuracy of information from documents compiled or reported by external sources. If you have reason to believe any of the information is inaccurate or has changed since reported in any of the above sources and you can provide documentation to such effect, please feel free to use the following form to submit a notice.

Did you know? Direct links to most of the orchestra’s financial disclosure documents at guidestar.org are available in the Orchestra Financial Reports.

What The Data Doesn’t Show

It is important to remember that the numbers shown do not always convey a complete compensation picture. For example, an executive director may have had a large increase in salary due to a severance or deferred compensation package owed when the position was vacated. Additionally, the documents used to gather data do not indicate how much of the season an individual received a salary. As such, the cumulative compensation may artificially inflate annual earnings. Conversely, reported figures may not reflect bonuses or other incentive payments, therefore underreporting what executives may actually earn. As such, the cumulative compensation executives may or may not be more than what is listed.

If you’re curious about exactly how much of a difference can exist, the Philadelphia Orchestra bankruptcy proceeding shed a sliver of light onto the river of unspecified compensation executives can garner by way of perks and benefits. Details were reported in an article published on 3/2/2012. For additional details about any individual executive’s compensation in any given season, you should review the respective IRS Form 990 for any statements, notes, and/or addendums provided by the organization to explain compensation abnormalities.

2011/12 Season Executive Compensation

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About Drew McManus

"I hear that every time you show up to work with an orchestra, people get fired." Those were the first words out of an executive's mouth after her board chair introduced us. That executive is now a dear colleague and friend but the day that consulting contract began with her orchestra, she was convinced I was a hatchet-man brought in by the board to clean house.

I understand where the trepidation comes from as a great deal of my consulting and technology provider work for arts organizations involves due diligence, separating fact from fiction, interpreting spin, as well as performance review and oversight. So yes, sometimes that work results in one or two individuals "aggressively embracing career change" but far more often than not, it reinforces and clarifies exactly what works and why.

In short, it doesn't matter if you know where all the bodies are buried if you can't keep your own clients out of the ground, and I'm fortunate enough to say that for more than 15 years, I've done exactly that for groups of all budget size from Qatar to Kathmandu.

For fun, I write a daily blog about the orchestra business, provide a platform for arts insiders to speak their mind, keep track of what people in this business get paid, help write a satirical cartoon about orchestra life, hack the arts, and love a good coffee drink.

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